COVID-19
Updates for March 2020

MARCH 31, 2020

A MESSAGE FROM GREG CHAMBERY, ADMINISTRATOR

As of today we have no known cases of COVID-19 in the resident or staff population. Every staff member is continuing to be temperature tested and asked a series of questions on their way into the facility. Staff is being kept in the building for the entirety of their scheduled shift each day.

Many of us may have heard the President on Sunday evening as he announced that the orders to stay home will continue right through the month of April. Given this time frame, it is important that The Maplewood continue to find new and innovative ways to keep our facility operating as normally as possible. We work on that every day.

I came across a very interesting talk on-line from a hospital physician who works directly with COVID-19 patients each and every day. He has learned a lot about the virus over the last few weeks. What I found interesting about his video is that he states, many times over, that he is no longer afraid of the virus.

A MESSAGE FROM LYNN PIERCE, DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL SERVICES

Maplewood is a community and our togetherness continues. We have always needed you and still do! Your loving support and warm communications remain vitally important to your loved ones well-being and care.

While family provide support and caring from the outside in, the staff continues to provide care and support on the inside. While you cannot be here in person, as always we will be your eyes and ears and we will give you updates and information. Even though your involvement is happening in a different way, your input and feedback helps us maintain our Maplewood personal approach to care and quality of life.

We appreciate your willingness to build bridges of communication in creative ways. Over the past two weeks we have seen heartwarming moments and loving communications over and over again. We are so fortunate today with technology – families and residents are using FaceTime, Google Duo, visits through the glass windows with cell phones and phones calls. Family members are also returning to traditional ways by sending cards, letters and pictures with special messages – these are all so wonderful for the residents to receive and enjoy. All of these experiences are reassuring and comforting to your loved one.

Family and friends have also been very supportive of the staff, sending words of support, appreciation and confidence in our caring for your loved ones. We need this too and want to thank you so much.

As Greg has shared so many times, “we want to treat others as we would treat our family”. We are a community family and together we will push through this until we can hug each other once again!

MARCH 26, 2020

A MESSAGE FROM GREG CHAMBERY, ADMINISTRATOR

As I write this, there is no evidence to suggest any resident or employee of The Maplewood has contracted the COVID-19 virus. Our measures of precaution have served us well.

We know there are many questions and concerns on your mind regarding how your loved one is doing and how the facility is operating during this virus situation. We understand those concerns and we want to assure you that we continue to be proactive and take every measure to keep your loved ones and our staff safe. We will do our best to provide updates and information on an ongoing basis.

In this video, I provide answers to the questions we are hearing most often. I explain how our facility is responding on a daily basis to the many aspects of managing this situation. I hope you find it helpful and informative.

As always, taking care of your loved ones is our highest honor and priority. Thank you for placing your trust in us.

MARCH 24, 2020

A MESSAGE FROM GREG CHAMBERY, ADMINISTRATOR

As I write to you this morning, there is no evidence to suggest any resident or employee of The Maplewood has contracted the COVID-19 virus. Our measures of precaution have served us well.

Despite this good news, our staff is prepared to deal with the situation if a case arises at Maplewood. These plans include staffing the facility if a number of our workers become ill and also protecting residents if a case of COVID-19 should be detected in the resident population. We feel confident that we are staying ahead of the situation and we are doing our best to provide as much normalcy to the residents as we can.

I want to thank all our family members for your understanding during this difficult time. You have been very gracious to all of us at Maplewood and we appreciate all of the words of support and well wishes as we take on this challenge. Additionally, the greater Rochester area citizens have been amazing. Contrary to what you might be hearing in the news, the lack of personal protective equipment is still pretty acute. We count and report to the state our inventory every day. We know that if this challenge goes on for a long time we will face a problem. To that end, the community seamstresses and tailors have rallied around us by producing masks in their homes and businesses. They have used CDC guidance as they design and construct these masks and we are grateful to be receiving them. What a testimony to neighbors helping neighbors.

Over the years I have heard a lot of stories from residents about some pretty tough times they lived through. Many of those situations were worse than the challenge ahead for us, but I dare say that it is now our turn. Speaking for our staff, I can tell you that we are a committed group of people who are not afraid of working hard and doing amazing things. Thank you for your continued trust in us.

A MESSAGE FROM GARY SACCO, DIRECTOR OF RECREATION

We miss all of our families and friends visiting but we can assure you that we continue to provide socialization for our residents, just differently. Our recreation department is focusing on individual visits and activities. We are also managing spontaneous groups, as they gather, trying to provide interesting mini-events while ensuring safe social distancing.

We are spending most of our time going from room to room visiting with residents and having wonderful conversations. We also continue to try to follow resident’s interests. For example, I’ve provided a number of individual news and views sessions, where the discussions were about current news stories. We give DVDs to residents who enjoy watching movies, documentaries and concerts. Andre Rieu continues to be a popular choice for music lovers. The silver lining is that, through these visits, we’re learning more than ever before about our residents.

We are trying to discourage group gatherings, but we have a lot of residents who love to socialize. If a small group forms, we jump in to engage residents while keeping them far enough away from each other. We’ve even managed a few Bridge games, with plenty of social distancing. Sometimes, the best remedy for all of us, is round of funny jokes!

Staff from every department is helping too – spending time visiting with residents to chat or do a quiet activity together. And, our therapy staff continues to deliver PT, exercise and wellness services – they are just doing it one person at a time.

In addition to one-on-one visits, we are facilitating video chats with families. See below for information about this and if you haven’t already signed up – please do so. Residents love it!

Stay healthy everyone.

MARCH 20, 2020

A MESSAGE FROM GREG CHAMBERY, ADMINISTRATOR

As I write to you this morning, there is no evidence to suggest any resident or employee of Maplewood has contracted the COVID-19 virus. This is very good news. As the cases outside Maplewood increase, it is important that we ramp up our facility efforts to the highest level. We are doing everything in our power to protect our residents from contracting this illness. As of Monday, our traditional dining services in communal dining rooms were curtailed. The same holds true for group social programs. To the extent possible, we are now keeping residents on their nursing units and in their rooms. We are taking steps to ensure that residents have social interaction. As you’ll read below, we have purchased several Chromebooks and are facilitating video chats between residents and loved ones. In addition, our staff is spending extra one-on-one time with residents by having people from recreation, therapy, nursing, administration and housekeeping visiting, sharing an activity or just keeping them company for a while.

Despite all the problems of the outside world shutting down, our employees are here and working very hard. They are all dedicated people doing amazing things. As people arrive for work, we continue to carefully screen by taking temperatures and asking exposure related questions of all employees coming in the door. Beginning yesterday, anyone working at Maplewood who has potential to come within 6 feet of a resident is issued a face mask. This precaution is happening so that if a staff member unknowingly has the virus and is not showing signs or symptoms, there will be a protective barrier from them spreading the virus by a sneeze or a cough. I share these processes with you so that you know that at this point we have implemented every precautionary measure that is available to us as a facility to protect our residents.

Below are answers to some frequently asked questions:

Adult diapers can be dropped off at the front door Monday through Friday from 9am – 4 pm.

As of today, The Maplewood will be doing the laundry for all residents, including those whose families normally do it.

Several inquiries have been made about food being accepted. At this point in time, we cannot accept food from the outside.

Mail continues to be picked up on a daily basis and delivered to our residents.

As we move forward I will continue provide information and items of interest. Speaking for the staff, we want you to know that we care deeply about the people in our building and will continue to do all we can to protect them during this difficult time.

VIDEO CHATS

We’ve started video chats and residents are really enjoying the chance to connect, talk and see their loved ones on screen. Families and friends sign up for chat time and then we provide a calendar listing each time slot.

We’re using newly purchased Chromebooks and the Google Duo App and we are having great success so far.

To set up the Google Duo App on your iphone or android, follow these steps:

Open the app store (Apple App Store or Google Play)

Search for and download the free Google Duo App

Launch the app. Step through the setup which may include agreeing to terms, giving access to things like your phone’s camera, microphone and contacts, and adding your mobile phone number.NOTES: Be sure to grant access to allow us to find your phone and video chat with you. Also, the setup will most likely include verification of your phone number – you will be asked to enter a confirmation code that you receive via text to confirm you own the device. Follow the steps to confirm.

You can now receive video chat calls through the app. You can also dial and video chat with any number in your contacts that is associated with the Google Duo App.

MARCH 17, 2020

A MESSAGE FROM GREG CHAMBERY, ADMINISTRATOR

Recent events have interrupted all of our daily routines in a myriad of different ways. No one could have imagined just a few short months ago what we are dealing with today. Some of the issues and challenges that we faced back then hold little meaning now and seem to pale in comparison to what we see ahead of us today. Despite these changes, there are some things that remain as constants in any situation. Faith, family and friends are just a couple of examples that come to mind when I think about these constants. I know how much disruption and disturbance the notion of not being able to visit family at Maplewood is causing. We are keeping these issues front and center as our Maplewood team prioritizes our daily response to challenges.

As of today we have no known cases of Covid-19 in the resident or staff population. Every staff member is being temperature tested and asked a series of questions on their way into the facility. Staff is being kept in the building for the entirety of their scheduled shift each day. Our Medical Director is either on-site or checking in with us several times each day and is adjusting our clinical practices based on conditions. Our mail is being picked up from the post office on a daily basis and delivered to residents right away. We continue to adjust our communication channels to meet the needs of the current situation. We will continue to keep you updated on activities inside Maplewood on a regular basis.

All of us at Maplewood understand the seriousness of the situation. We want to assure you that we are working 24/7 to provide the safest environment we can for our residents during this difficult time.

VIDEO MESSAGE FOR FAMILY MEMBERS

We are sharing a video message that we thought you might find helpful and informative. It features Dr. David Gifford, a geriatrician and Chief Medical Officer of AHCA/NCAL, explaining the reasoning behind the recommendation to limit visitors to nursing homes and assisted living communities and how families can help prevent the spread.

MARCH 13, 2020

A MESSAGE FROM GREG CHAMBERY, ADMINISTRATOR
VISITATION POLICY

Maplewood Nursing Home has been and continues to be guided by recommendations from the New York State Department of Health and CMS regarding COVID 19. This is in regards to precautions and procedures to protect and maintain the health and safety of our residents and staff. We do not have any active cases of COVID-19, but we are taking all precautionary measures to keep your loved ones safe.

We know that this restriction presents concerns. We share those concerns. We will continue to communicate information on a regular basis and will do our best to answer questions as soon as we are able.

We are committed to ensuring the safety of our residents and staff. Please be assured we are taking every measure to prevent this virus from entering our building.